/ 1 O 1B0.1 



REMIMISOEISrOES 



OW ^RiyiY LIIPK 



—UNDER— 



ISTapoleon Bonaparte 



/ BY 

/ 

ADELBERT J. DOISY DE VILLARGENNES 

Former Vice Consul of Italy at Cincinnati 



^ 



/j -^ 




CINCINNATI 

ROBERT CLARKE & CO 

1884 



Copyright, 1884, 
By LOUISA A. J. DOISY. 



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-^s>' 



PREFACE. 



Some six or seven years since, my father, at the 
request of a member of his family, undertook to write 
down a few recollections of his former career while 
serving in the army under Napoleon. 

This work does not pretend to be a connected his- 
tory of that period. As its title indicates, it is 
merely a series of reminiscences of events mostly within 
the experience of the writer; events which had im- 
pressed themselves more forcibly upon his mind than 
did other occurrences of equal or perhaps superior 
importance. 

At the time of writing these memoirs, the author 

was about eighty-four years of age, but his memory 

was unimpaired in regard to all matters relating to 

the early period of his life. The strong grasp which 

the young mind had fastened upon the then present 

events had never released nor even slackened its 

(iii) 



iv Preface. 

hold, although the matured memory was dropping 
daily from its clasp, the more recent occurrences of 
life. 

In the month of August, 1869, the one hundredth 
anniversary of the birth of Napoleon was celebrated 
with great enthusiasm by the French citizens of 
Detroit, Michigan. My father made the closing 
speech of the occasion ; its peroration is here quoted 
as being a good exemplification of the ruling passion 
which ran through his life, and was strong even to the 
end : 

"I never took any other oath of allegiance but 
that of fidelity to Napoleon and his dynasty ; that 
oath I have kept ; I shall keep it. I never uttered 
but one political exclamation, and it, I hope, Avill 
exhale itself with my dying breath: 

'Vive l'Empereue Napoleon !'" 

L. A. J. D. (Z. Z.) 



REMINISCENCES OF ARMY LIFE 
UNDER NAPOLEON I. 



THE stirring events of the first decade in 
the present century were calculated to 
launch youth prematurely into the troubled 
ocean of man's life. I seem to have been des- 
tined to follow the tide. At the age of fifteen 
years I began the world on my own individual- 
ity. A tradition in our family asserted that one 
of its ancestors had been an admiral ; this, pos- 
sibly, together with the fact of my own ad- 
venturous disposition, influenced my parents' 
decision in regard to my future destiny, and 
it was settled that I should enter the navy. 

In November, 1807, the Emperor l^apoleon 
Bonaparte resolved to wrest Portugal from the 
domination of England, and sent for this pur- 
pose an expedition commanded by Junot. 
In the harbor of Lisbon was found a small 



6 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

fleet, which the escaped family of Braganza 
had no time to take away with them to 
BraziL The command of this squadron was 
given to Commodore Magendie, a distant re- 
lation of my mother, and he took me with 
him as his secretary, although I was nomi- 
nally enrolled as a novice on the books of 
the Vasco de Gama, the flag-ship. During 
the nine months, however, that our army 
occupied Portugal, I was hut three or four 
times on board. 

I may here state that my appointment as 
secretary was due, not only to family interest, 
but to my reputation among admiring friends 
as an English scholar; for had I not gained a 
premium at school for my extemporaneous 
translation of a page of Goldsmith's " "Vicar 
of Wakefield ? ", Did I not glibly enough re- 
peat from my book of dialogues such sen- 
tences as the following, pronounced, too, as I 
endeavor here to represent them : " Good 
mor-naing, sair. Haou do you do ? Zis is 
bioutayfool oizer," etc. 

After the battle of Yimeira and the con- 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 7 

vention of Cintra, our army was conveyed 
back to France in English vessels. But be- 
fore leaving the Tagus, I must relate a comical 
incident, which might, however, have had 
serious consequences. 

On the eve of sailing, General Laborde 
in^v^ited several English army officers, from 
whom he had received attention, to meet at 
dinner some French officers who were on 
board with him; as a compliment, he invited 
likewise a navy officer named Garrott, who 
acted then as Agent of the Transport Board. 
This latter was a little, vulgar man, who, 
whenever he had the opportunity, lost his 
reason in his libations. Commodore Ma- 
gendie and myself were also of the party, and 
on account of my knowledge (?) of English I 
was placed near Captain Garrott, to serve as 
interpreter, if occasion offered. It was then the 
3d of September, and the stern windows of 
the cabin were left open on account of the heat. 
The dinner passed on pleasantly, and friend 
Garrott paid assiduous court to the bottles 
within reach. When the fruit was laid on 



8 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

the table, General Laborde rose, filled his 
glass, and in a short, appropriate speech, 
proposed the health of his Majesty, King 
George III. The toast was drank with en- 
thusiasm, the whole company standing. Then 
an English officer (Colonel Haverfield, I be- 
lieve) rose, and in courteous terms pro- 
posed the health of the Emperor JSTapoleon. 
All glasses were cheerfully emptied, except 
that of Garrott, who began to protest vo- 
ciferously, in language wholly unbecoming a 
gentleman, that he never would drink to the 
health of "Boney." On the other side of me 
was seated a French major of cavalry. Petit by 
name, a man of Herculean size and power. 
To this gentleman Captain Garrott now be- 
gan to address his conversation, if such could 
be called the volley of oaths and senseless 
curses with which he seasoned his discourse, 
until at last he roused the indignation of the 
English officers. Major Petit had heretofore 
remained imperturbable, but now, at an in- 
sulting gesture of Garrott, he rose, saying 
coolly, " Gentlemen, be pleased to leave him 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 9 

to me." Upon which he went to Garrott, 
seized him as he would a doll, by the collar 
and trousers, and walking to the window, 
balanced him for a moment, and then deliber- 
ately pitched him into the Tagus ! Turning 
to the company : " Gentlemen," said he coolly, 
" if any one is dissatisfied, I am at his serv- 
ice." Several voices at once, accompanied by 
loud laughter, called out, " ITo, no ! Well 
done ! Served him right ! " Meanwhile, poor 
Garrott was fished up by the crew of a boat 
moored astern of the ship, and returned all 
dripping to the cabin ; apparently sobered, 
an& giving no sign of displeasure at his 
strange visit to the Tagus. 

Poor man ! I should not speak lightly of 
him, for I owe him a debt of gratitude. En- 
dowed with a sort of faculty or- instinct, 
which enabled him to comprehend, or rather 
to guess the meaning of my language, he 
proclaimed me to all comers as a very sati^ 
factory English scholar, and thus propped up 
my reputation, sadly shaken, if not wholly 



10 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

demolished, by an incident that occurred 
about this time. 

A commissary in the English army having 
occasion to obtain some information from the 
commodore, called at our office, and his 
French being found unintelligible, he was re- 
ferred to me. Our conversation must have 
been, to him at least, little edifying or satis- 
factory, for at last he concluded by saying in 
very bland tones : " My dear young friend, I 
wish you would talk French ; I may perhaps 
make it out better than your English ! " I 
was simple enough to rehearse this compli- 
ment among my acquaintances, and thereby 
drew upon myself sarcasm that tended not a 
little to crush whatever degree of conceit had 
been in me. 

Shortly after my return to France, I was 
shipped on the frigate Pallas, where I passed 
my examination, and became a midshipman. 
On the night of April 11, 1809, the blockad- 
ing English fleet sent fire-ships through ours, 
then at anchor. A few days after this event, 
I was surprised at receiving a commission as 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 11 

sub-lieuteriaut in the 26th regiment of in- 
fantry, then at Strasbourg, on its way to 
Germany, with orders to join it immediately. 
My father, witliont consulting me, and fore- 
seeing quicker promotion in the army than in 
the navy, had* obtained this commission for 
me. My regiment arrived at the island of 
Loban in time to share in the battle of Ess- 
ling, May 22d, and in which, as my baptism of 
fire, I was wounded by the splinter of a shell. 
In speaking of this, my first campaign, I 
shall abstain, for two reasons, from attempting 
to describe any of its varied engagements. 
First, I witnessed but few of its numerous 
skirmishes ; second, I do not wish to resemble 
those who, on the plea that they were present 
at a battle, pretend to give an accurate ac- 
count of the action ; their very presence 
precludes their ability to present such a re- 
port. I speak, of course, of inferior ofiicers 
only; they, indeed, can protray the evolutions 
of their own corps; the sudden passage of a 
battery of field artillery, or the momentary 
charge of a body of cavalry, etc. But the 



12 Beminiscences of Army Life. 

noise, the cloud of smoke, the agitation con- 
sequent upon each one obeying implicitly 
orders of which, perhaps, he does not under- 
stand the bearing; the extent of the field, 
sometimes, as at Wagram, covering miles ; 
every circumstance, in short, tends to inca- 
pacitate the subaltern from filling faithfully 
the ofl&ce of a reporter. Speaking for my- 
self, I declare that after an engagement worth 
the appellation of a battle, I have invariably 
\ learned the particulars of it two or three days 
later from the bulletins of head-quarters. 

Instead of venturing to discuss subjects be- 
yond my power, I shall meet the object and 
the title of this narration better by relating 
two incidents which occurred in the course of 
this short campaign, premising that I did 
not witness either of them, but that they 
were the universal and uncontradicted subject 
of conversation in the army, though, for ob- 
vious reasons, publicity in the newspapers was 
suppressed. 

After the battles of Eckmuhl and Ratisbon, 
a magnificent avenue leading to the latter city 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 13 

liad been totally ruined by the passage of up- 
ward of two liuudred thousand men. The 
emperor ordered it to be repaired, and a com- 
pany of infantry was posted at each extrem- 
ity, with the express command not to allow 
any one to enter it on horseback. General 
Yandamme, as well known for his bravery as 
for the extreme rudeness of his manners, pre- 
sented himself on his horse at the entrance of 
the avenue, and was proceeding further, when 
the sentry on duty, a raw young recruit, came 
forward and stated the orders he had received. 
" Greneral Yandamme passes anywhere !" ex- 
claimed Yandamme ; " get out of the way !" 
On the soldier's appearing to insist, the gen- 
eral gave him a blow of his whip across the 
face, cursiug his impudence. The young lad, 
intimidated, was about to J^ield, when the 
captain who commanded at the post, and 
who, walking about, had witnessed the scene, 
rushed toward the sentry, snatched the mus- 
ket violently out of his hands, and, running in 
front of the general, leveled the piece at him, 
exclaiming, " General, if you advance one 



14 Beminiscences of Army Life. 

step more I will shoot you like a dog for daring 
to treat my sentry as you have done !" Van- 
damme, seeing at once whom he had to deal 
with, thought it best to comply, and withdrew, 
muttering a threat to revenge himself on the 
bold captain. 

An opjDortunity soon presented itself. Gen- 
eral Yandamme, being the temporary gov- 
ernor of Katisbon, on visiting the different 
posts, recognized in the oflG.cer on duty at the 
main guard on the great square of the city the 
unlucky captain who had checkmated him at 
the avenue. The square was then swarming 
Avith lounging officers of all ranks. Yan- 
damme took no apparent notice of his adver- 
sary, but having fully recognized him, went 
away without addressing him a word. Soon, 
however, profiting by the vicinity of a small 
crooked street, such as are almost all streets 
in Ratisbon, he suddenly re-appeared before 
the post. The sentry immediately called out 
the guard, according to regulations when the 
commanding general presents himself. The 
captain instantly rushed out with the 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 15 

guard, but so sudden and unexpected had 
been the second visit of the general that a few 
minutes elapsed before the ranks were formed 
and arms presented. Meanwhile, the general, 
standing motionless, had waited for this mo- 
ment ; then, giving vent to his brutal disposi- 
tion, he assailed the unfortunate captain in the 
most opprobrious terms, telling him that he 
was fitter to drive a herd of hogs than to com- 
mand soldiers, etc. By this time a crowd 
of officers had collected round the spot. The 
captain, during this painful scene, had suffi- 
cient control over himself to refrain from an- 
swering a single word. But, as soon as his 
post was relieved, he called on Marshal Oudi- 
not, the commander of the staff, and, after re- 
lating the facts of the affair, demanded per- 
iliission to challenge General Yandamme. The 
marshal, in rather severe tones, refused the re- 
quest. On this the captain (his name was, I 
believe, Jollivet, 14th light infantry) did not 
hesitate a moment, but aware, as was all the 
army, how easy of access the emperor was, he 
at once determined on havins: direct recourse 



16 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

to liis majesty. He accordingly repaired to 
the pavilion occupied by JSTapoleon, demanded 
and obtained an immediate audience, related 
in tlie fullest details both his interviews with 
General Yandamme, and concluded with a re- 
quest for the same favor which he had vainly 
solicited from Oudinot. Napoleon, with his 
usual affability toward his inferiors, an- 
swered : " Sir, I sympathize with your feelings 
on this occasion ; but you must feel that your 
demand is inadmissible. The general officers 
of the army are to be here to-morrow at 
twelve o'clock — come at the same hour. Mean- 
while, I shall have strict inquiry made; and 
if, as I do not doubt, your version of the af- 
fair is quite correct, I shall require a suitable 
apology from General Yandamme to you." 

Punctual to the hour, the captain attended 
the meeting, and modestly, from the inferi- 
ority of his rank, remained behind the circle 
formed round the emperor. The conversa- 
tion, as on such ceremonious occasions, was 
confined to trivial subjects, and the company 
seemed preparing to take their leave, when our 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 17 

bold captain, elbowing his way tlirough mar- 
shals and generals, stepped into the center of 
the circle, and fearlessly addressing the em- 
peror, said : " Sire, you vouchsafed to prom- 
ise me you would demand from General 
Vandamme, here present, some apology for 
the undeserved insults which he oifered me. 
I come here in consequence of this promise." 
E^apoleon, without answering the captain, 
turned to Vaudamme, saying : " General, I 
have inquired into the facts of this disagree- 
able affair, and I find that you have most un- 
warrantably and outrageously insulted an of- 
ficer who enjoys in his corps the highest charac- 
ter. You owe him a suitable apology, as public 
as your insult has been, and I insist on your 
making it here." "Sire," answered Van- 
damme, " I must regret having been carried 
away by passion in my addressing Captain Jol- 

livet; but these gentlemen" "That's 

enough !" exclaimed the captain. " I am satis- 
fied. Sire, I owe you more than my life. I thank 
your majesty." He could say no more ; emotion 
had stified his voice; he bowed and retired. 



18 Beminiscences of Army Life. 

I have not heard what his subsequent career 
may have been. 

It frequently happened that sudden accla- 
mations of " Vive I'Empereur !" stirred the 
humors of our bivouac fires. This often oc- 
curred from the enthusiasm of the soldiers at 
the recital of some trait in the life of their 
idolized chief. The first outpouring of such 
a feeling witnessed by me was occasioned by 
the animated account of the foregoing inci- 
dent by a sergeant to a large concourse of 
soldiers. The strict sense of justice ; the gen- 
erosity of IsTapoleon toward those who had 
served well, or toward the families of those 
who had fallen ; his paternal attention to those 
in hospitals; his severe surveillance over the 
conduct of contractors for the supply of the 
troops; the commanding influence which he 
unafiectedly exerted over his most distin- 
guished generals; all these aroused the enthu- 
siasm of our soldiers at the mere recital of 
some agreeable trait in the acts of their idol. 

I feel a certain reluctance in relating the 
second incident alluded to above, as it affects 



Beminiscences of Army Life. 19 

a character for which I profess and entertain 
the highest respect : that of a French officer. 
But there are in all armies a few individuals 
unworthy of the epaulets which they wear; 
and the publicity given to the unmasking 
and punishing the man who has disgraced his 
rank is a lesson of public morals which may 
have more than one useful application. 

While a part of the army was at Passau, at 
the confluence of the river Inn with the Dan- 
ube, a major in the artillery of the Imperial 
G-uard (I shall suppress his name) had ac- 
quired a most detestable notoriety by the 
number of duels, by him styled' successful, 
which he had fought. His skill with sword 
or pistol, as well as his insolence, had become 
proverbial, and his comrades had nicknamed 
him " Le grand diable." One day, at a coffee 
house much frequented by officers, two captains 
in the 65th of the Line had been there playing 
a game of billiards. One of them, having 
momentarily left the room, his friend was 
awaiting him, standing near the table. At 
this moment in stepped the major, accom- 



20 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

panied by two friends. Approaching the 
table he took up the balls, and was proceeding 
to arrange them anew when the absent gentle- 
man returned and interposed, stating in polite 
terms that the table was engaged, as he and 
his friend were then in the midst of a game. 
" I insist," exclaimed the major, " that the 
table is not engaged when people are not ac- 
tually playing !" The captain answered in a 
few angry words, when the major, seizing and 
placing one of the balls before him, vocifer- 
ated, " I tell you that I have a right to the 
table, and let me see who will presume to touch 
this ball." The captain, without replying, took 
up a cue, and coolly drove the ball before him. 
On this, the major struck a violent blow in the 
face of his antagonist. Several officers rushed 
forward tO interpose, but the captain, antici- 
pating them, addressed the major in some- 
thing like the following terms : " Sir, you 
have mortally insulted me, and I shall have 
satisfaction; bat on equal terms, for I shall 
not allow you to kill me as you boast having 
done so many others. I hold in my hand a 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 21 

few coins : name you odd or even. If you 
guess right you will shoot me ; but if you 
miss I shall certainly blow out your brains, 
for one of us must not leave this room alive." 
So saying, he withdrew his closed hand from 
his pocket, excla;iming, " ]^ow, call out !" 
"Without appearing much disturbed, the major 
sung out, " Even !" The captain then laid his 
open hand on the table, saying to the friends 
of the major, " Gentlemen, be pleased to 
count." There were seven N'apoleons dis- 
played to the view of all. 

The captain turned to the friend with whom 
he had been playing, and desired him aloud 
to go to his lodging and bring him his pistols, 
which were loaded. He departed, and the 
captain locked the door after him, putting the 
key in his pocket. The persons present, about 
twenty in number, walked silently about the 
room, awaiting the sequel of this exciting 
scene. The messenger returned, handed the 
pistols to his friend, who forthwith stepped up 
to the major, and presented the weapon to his 
face with the words, " Are you ready ?" The 



22 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

two friends of the major now wished to inter- 
pose their mediation, which the captain firmly 
declined to permit ; till, finally, on their observ- 
ing that the major was paymaster to his corps, 
and had some important papers to settle, it 
was agreed that he should be allowed to with- 
draw for the space of half an hour; his friends, 
meanwhile, remaining as guarantees for his 
return. This was done, and in the meantime 
the two gentlemen, renewing their kind en- 
deavors, said almost jocularly : " But surely, 
captain, you do not intend to avail yourself 
of your right, and shoot him ?" " But I as- 
suredly do intend it," retorted the captain. 
" I shall, however, for your sakes, gentlemen, 
leave him one other alternative, which will be 
that he will leap out of this window into the 
street; if he decline to avail himself of this 
chance, I shall certainly make a hole in him." 
Half an hour — a whole hour elapsed — 
and the Grand Diable had not re-appeared. 
Tho only information obtained, two or three 
days later, was that on the day of the above 
events, he had been seen passing beyond the 



lie ininiscenccs of Army Life. 23 

outposts; tlius giviug the sad, and I rejoice 
to add, the solitary instance of a French of- 
ficer deserting to the enemy ; if I except the 
infamous treason of Bourmont, on the eve of 
Waterloo. 

About the same time a ludicrous incident 
occurred, which occasioned a good deal of 
merriment in tho army. I relate it as exhibit- 
ing the artless and implicit confidence which 
the soldiers reposed in the emperor's word, 
and also in his power. 

Some depredations having been committed 
in the country by our troops, ISTapoleon issued 
an order of the day, denouncing severe pen- 
alties upon the perpetrators of such outrages, 
and, at the same time, promising that all losses 
arising from such cases, on being satisfac- 
torily proved, should be paid by the intendent 
general of the army. 

A marching company of infantry had been 
quartered for the night in a large inn, situated 
in a suburb of the ancient town of Donau- 
werth, on the Danube ; and the men rejoiced at 
being assigned as their dormitory an immense 



24 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

barn, filled with hay and other provender. 
During the night the captain's attention was 
aroused by a loud altercation which proceeded 
from the barn, and thither he hastily repaired. 
He arrived in time to hear the conclusion, 
which was somewhat as follows : " Oh !" mis- 
ter soldier ! in the name of all the saints !" 
exclaimed in broken French, and in a most 
dolorous tone of voice, the proprietor of the 
inn, "I humbly beg 3^ou will not go on smok- 
ing there; you may set my poor property on 
fire, and still worse, burn the whole city of 
Donauwerth !" " Well !" roared out the sol- 
dier, " what of that, you old fool ? Have you 
not read the emperor's order of the day, pla- 
carded on all the walls of. the town ? Why, 
if I burn it, they '11 pay it to you, your old 
city!" 

!N'apoleon, before the public, thought it de- 
sirable to appear stern, even to severity ; but, 
with his friends, such as Cambaceres, Murat, 
Caulaincourt, Duroc, and Savary, he yielded 
to his natural afi'ability, and even, sometimes, 
indulged in a good-natured jest or pleasantry. 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 25 

After the conclusion of the campaign of 
Wagram, the emperor returned to France. 
He was met on the hridge of the Rhine by an 
immense concourse of people, and a deputa- 
tion headed by M. de Pontecoulant, prefect 
of the department of Bas-Rhine, and one of 
the most eminent among the civilians of this 
epoch. 

The prefect had carefully prepared an address 
suited to the occasion ; but the excitement of 
the moment, the display of military pomp, 
the surrounding staff, perhaps also some of 
that uncontrollable feeling at sight of the em- 
peror which I had myself experienced, and 
which at this time was shared by nearly the 
whole of France : all these causes combined 
produced so powerful an effect on M. de Ponte- 
coulant that he suddenly totally forgot his in- 
tended speech. However, in hopes that once 
the ice broken, he might recover his treacher- 
ous memory, he ventured to begin in tremulous 
accents: " Sire, your faithful subjects of the 
city of Strasbourg are so happy at seeing 
you again that — that — Sire, your faithful sub- 



26 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

jects are so happy that" — " Oh ! yes !" the 
the emperor exclaimed, at the same time 
shaking cordially the dismayed prefect by the 
hand, " My friend, M de Pontecoulant, and 
the kind citizens of Strasbourg are so happy 
to see me that they can not express their joy !" 
On one occasion, Savary, the minister of 
police, gave notice to the emperor of an in- 
dividual who had repeatedly solicited an au- 
dience of his majesty. He had been refused ad- 
mittance, being an absolute stranger, but he 
was still, at that moment, sitting on the stair- 
case of the Tuileries. l^apoleon desired his 
immediate admittance, upon which he was 
introduced by Savary. ISTapoleon asked the 
man his business. " Sire," was the reply, 
"the communication I have to make is of 
such a nature that to your majesty alone I 
can intrust it." The emperor then desired 
Savary to leave the room, and resumed his 
writing. A few minutes passed, and the 
stranger, remaining silent, Napoleon exclaim- 
ed, with some irritation, " Well, why don't 
you speak ?" " Sire," answered the man, " as I 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 27 

stated before, I can not speak unless to your 
majesty alone." The emperor turned around, 
and seeing Savary still standing near the door 
of the apartment, reitererated in a stern voice 
the order to leave the room. Savary hastily 
answered : " I will not. Sire. This fellow has 
a villainous physiognomy ; and besides, from 
information I have procured, I find he is a 
Corsican ; I do not trust him." " Ah ! in- 
deed !" said the emperor, with a smile; "a 
Corsican, is he ? AVell, so am I. Leave us 
instantly." The stranger remained closeted 
for a considerable time with ]!^apoleon; and 
conjecture itself has never been able to as- 
certain who he was or the character of his 
errand. This incident is more than alluded 
to in the " Memoires de Savary," but not 
mentioned in the " Memorial de St. Helene." 
The campaign being ended, we went by 
short stages through the greater part of Ger- 
many, and through a large part of France, 
diagonally, having recrossed the Rhine at 
Diisseldorf, and scarcely halting for one day, 
until we reached Baj^onne. There we re- 



28 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

maiiiecl four days, to renew our arms and 
accoutrements, and to receive recruits, having 
left four hundred of our men buried in Ger- 
man soiL We re-entered Spain on the 6th 
day of October, 1809, as a part of the corps 
commanded by Marshal N'ey. 

Here, what a contrast awaited even those 
of us who had previously visited Iberia. To 
the sauerkraut, the noodles, and the white 
beer^ which we had abundantly enjoyed in 
Bavaria, and scantily in Austria, had suc- 
ceeded, in our passage through France, the 
usual rations of rather poor meat, jpain de 
munition, id est, bread made half of rye flour 
and half of wheat and bran ; the whole 
seasoned with as much cold water as the men 
were inclined to imbibe. Still, we were then 
on our native soil, and the hospitable inhabit- 
ants, although already taxed by the incessant 
passage of numerous armies, exerted them- 
selves to the utmost to evince their sympathy 
with the men who had fought abroad the 
battles of the fatherland. 

Here in Spain, for food, a solid, massive 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 29 

bread, composed of maize, with a small pro- 
portion of wheaten flour ; garvaiizos, toma- 
toes, pimentos, a rare distribution of skinny, 
meager goats' flesh, accompanied by a scanty 
allowance of tolerably good wine, but so 
saturated with the taste and odor of the 
goatskins in which it had been transported 
that the men at first could scarcely be induced 
to taste it — such, generally, was the fare that 
awaited us in Spain — happy, if even this could 
always be available. 

The climate brought us another disappoint- 
ment. I, like many others, had formerly 
visited Spain m summer only, and we repre- 
sented the country as being warm indeed, but 
heavenly in its generally pure atmosphere, 
its balmy zephyrs, and its luxuriant, healthy 
soil. War, it must be remembered, had not 
at that time devastated the country in which 
we were, as yet, generally regarded as friends, 
and we had left it with minds fully disposed 
to describe coideur de rose every thing con- 
nected with Spain. "We very soon had to 



30 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

admit a strange contrast to our fond an- 
ticipations. 

In some respects, however, our people were 
not disappointed ; and especially in the lan- 
guage of the country. This so much re- 
sembled their own that they were enabled 
readily to guess, if not fully to comprehend, 
its meaning ; they were aided also by the in- 
telligent, earnest gestures, which were never- 
failing accompaniments of every word ut- 
tered. 

The common character of the Spaniards 
was likewise strikingly agreeable. The long 
occupation of Spain, combined with native 
manners derived from their Gothic ancestors, 
the Moors, then the most civilized people on 
the globe, and the blind subserviency of the 
people to the double tyranny of the court 
and the clergj", had stamped the personality 
of the middle classes, as well as that of the 
peasantry and of the working classes, with a 
submissive cast of deportment, which was by 
no m.eans indicative of servile submission, 
but rather of a respectful, though distant re- 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 31 

gard ; for, in their conduct toward their 
superiors, I have often noticed a certain de- 
gree of haughtiness which betrayed an origin 
of Moorish nobility. 

But the temperature of the country very 
soon led the new-comers to accuse of op- 
timism those of us who had given so flaming 
an account of the climate. When engaged 
in the defiles of the Guadarrama, we hap- 
pened to be overtaken by a furious snow- 
storm, and that so suddenly that we were 
not fully prepared for winter. My company 
was quartered in a small village, the name of 
which I shall not forget, for there I encount- 
ered the severest cold I ever experienced any- 
where. It was called Villalba, within a short 
distance of the famed castle of San Ildefonso, 
and of La Granza (the barn), the favorite 
residence of several Spanish monarchs. 

It does not enter into the plan of this nar- 
rative to attempt topographical descriptions, 
yet I can not pass on without giving a brief 
account of a monument which appeared -to 
me as stupendous, regarded as a work of art, 



32 Reniimscences of Army Life. 

as those creations of Divine power, the Falls 
of E'iagara, or the snow-capped dome of 
Mont Blanc. I allude to the aqueduct, which, 
after traversing ten miles of hill and vale, 
supplies San Ildefonso and Segovia with 
water. This work, unique in its grandeur, 
has been attributed to Trajan, but the simple 
natives doubt such an origin, and very gener- 
ally affirm that the aqueduct has always ex- 
isted, and was not constructed by human 
hands. Imagine a structure composed of two 
stone canals superposed with an interval of 
some twenty feet, and composed in their 
whole course of ten miles of enormous blocks 
of granite, so admirably fitted to each other, 
that without a particle of cement, not a drop 
of water can escape, and you may form some 
conception of the aqueduct of Segovia. 

From old Castile we went through Madrid 
and IsTew Castile to Estremadura ; here noth- 
ing occurred which could tally with the object 
of this memoir. However, I may not omit 
stating an observation which struck us all, 
and, if well founded, is an anomaly peculiar to 



Reminiscences of Army Life, 33 

Spain, ill contradistinction to other nations. 
In France, in Germany, in England, 3'ou may 
distinguish the natives of the several prov- 
inces by some intonations or peculiar patois, 
bat in general characteristics they are still es- 
sentially French, German, English. In Spain 
you may at once discern perceptible differ- 
ences, not so much in language as in manner, 
complexion, and customs. To the lively, smart 
manners, the spirited disposition of the Ar- 
ragonese, to the affected pride of the inhabit- 
ants of Madrid, and the wretched misery of 
the country parts of old Castile, succeeded 
in Estremadura a listless sort of apathy, a 
gravity of deportment, which might be as- 
cribed less to physical constitution than to the 
isolation in which the province was left by 
the want of roads and other means of com- 
munication with foreign countries, or even 
with neighboring provinces. Yet the people 
are reasonably proud, deriving, as I said, 
this trait from their former rulers, the civil- 
ized Moors ; and in the midst of poverty to 
which they seem reconciled, they make excel- 



34 Reynmiscences of Army Life. 

lent soldiers. The best horsemen in the Span- 
ish army are natives of Estremadura. 

At Truxillo, I witnessed that darling specta- 
cle of Spaniards, a bull fight. I was disap- 
pointed in the expectations raised previously 
by hearsay or by written accounts, I saw 
nothing here but wretched panic-struck bulls, 
maimed or butchered by awkward matadors 
and two miserable horses gored by the bulls. 

At Merida, where we were quartered, we 
found a town of few inhabitants, but of large 
extent, and possessing majestic tokens of an- 
cient splendor in the numerous monuments 
left by the Romans, at the time of their oc- 
cupation. 

Our corps now returned northward to the 
province of Leon, and there accident ol-- 
casioned the most active service I had as yet 
experienced. The head-quarters of our di- 
vision w^as at Salamanca. Whilst in that 
city, I was ordered, with a section of my com- 
pany, to escort a small convoy to the town of 
Toro. There, the feeble garrison being deemed 
insufficient to resist the numerous guerillas 



Reminiscences of Army Life. S5 

with which it was surrounded, I was detained, 
nolens volens, by the general commanding, and 
employed during the mouth of January in 
hunting for guerillas, generally with little 
success ; they were too nimble and also too well 
acquainted with the country. There was no 
question of a regular engagement, but now 
and then, over hedges or other inclosures, 
we were suddenly assailed with a volley of 
musketry, and our only satisfaction was to 
see a dozen men running full speed in a di- 
rection in which it would have been madness 
to follow. I lost four men in one of these 
ambuscades. 

On my return to Salamanca, I found that 
my regiment had gone to share in the siege of 
Cindad Rodrigo ; and again I was detained 
by General Thirbauch, the chief of the staff, 
for nearly the same reasons that had caused 
my detention at Toro ; the only difference 
was, that in addition to chasing the guerillas, 
and protecting communications on the roads 
to Toro and Yalladolid, I had to levy contri- 
butions of provisions and forage through a 



36 Eeminiscences of Army Life. 

district of several leagues in extent. Accord- 
ing to orders, I always delivered to the people 
levied upon a receipt, forming a draft on the 
intendant of the army, but I can not assert 
that these drafts were very punctually hon- 
ored. This service was the most agreeable I 
ever had in the army. In the first instance, I 
was, when on special duty, gencral-in-chief of 
my detachment ; obliged to obey orders as 
to the object of the expedition, but with abso- 
lute carte blanche as to the details. Besides, 
my detachment had been doubled, by receiv- 
ing into it all men leaving the hospital. From 
the same source, I received all the accoutre- 
ments I wanted. As to food, we took care of 
that in the villages that we visited, although 
we never slept in one for fear of being sur- 
prised by guerillas, but uniformly camped 
out of town. My men carried no mone}^ and 
thus the guerillas, knowing that no booty 
was to be obtained from them except the 
contents of their cartridge-boxes, and this in 
a manner not altogether pleasant, very seldom 
attacked us. 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 37 

Here it strikes me that the reader may 
justly be surprised that so independent a 
service as that described above should have 
been intrusted to the hands of such a young- 
ster as I was. This would at once be under- 
stood by those familiar with the French army 
at that time, but here demands some ex- 
planation. 

In England, the honor grades of officers, 
with very few exceptions, are filled up by 
purchase, and afterwards permit exchanging 
from one corps to another, with little or no 
difficulty. In Germany, the sons of nobles, 
or of persons high in office, alone enjoy the 
privilege of entering the army as officers ; it 
was so, at least, at the time of which I write. 
Quite different was the system followed in 
France. All private soldiers, whose conduct 
and ability entitled them to this distinction, 
were recommended by the council of admin- 
istration of their respective regiments, then 
approved by the minister of war, and finally 
nominated by the emperor to the rank of 
sous-lieutenant (corresponding to the title of 



38 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

ensign in England and to that of second 
lieutenant in the United States). A few mid- 
shipmen were transferred from the navy to 
this rank in the army. But by far the greater 
number of our sous-lieutenants had been pu- 
pils of the military school at Fontainebleau, 
and later at Saint Cyr. At the period of 
this narrative, education was at a very low 
ebb indeed throughout France, except in the 
cities, where good schools were well sup- 
ported. But in the country parts, from which 
we received nine-tenths of our recruits, the 
native intelligence of the people rendered less 
baneful the almost total absence of literary 
instruction. Hence, incredible as it may ap- 
pear, in a company of one hundred and 
twenty-one men, I have, excluding sergeants 
and corporals, counted only eight men capa- 
ble of reading or writing. From" this strange 
state of ignorance arose a curious result, 
peculiar, I believe, to the French army, and 
pregnant with remarkable consequences. The 
young men in the ranks had, when leaving 
home, left earnest requests for news to be 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 39 

forwarded to them by letters written by the 
priest or tbe school-master of their respective 
villages. Such letters, after reaching the reg- 
iment, had to be read and answered, but hj 
whom ? for they sometimes contained infor- 
mation either ludicrous or susceptible of 
bringing a blush to the cheek of the recipient. 
To communicate such correspondence to those 
of their comrades learned in the alphabet 
might have exposed them to the jeers and 
perhaps the contempt of their fellow soldiers ; 
to apply to field officers, or even to captains, 
would have been too wide a leap over the 
chasm separating the ranks; there remained 
one resource — the sous-lieutenants. These were 
nearly of an age with the recruits, and suffi- 
ciently superior in rank to remove the fear of 
indiscretion among the soldiers ; hence, the 
sous -lieutenant, or sometimes the first lieuten- 
ant of each compan}^, became the amanuensis, 
and necessarily the intimate confidant of the 
great majority of his men. It was thus, that 
before I was twenty years of age, I had be- 
come acquainted with the special and family 



40 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

ajffairs of upwards of fifty men, and had writ- 
ten for them several wills, powers of attorney 
to their relatives, or vows of eternal love to 
their sweethearts. The consequences may be 
anticipated. The young officers became se- 
riously interested in the welfare of their men ; 
the latter could hardly find opportunities 
enough to evince their ardent attachment for 
their youthful protectors. Many a field offi- 
cer was left for a time, wounded on the field, 
for a sous-lieutenant must first be removed 
out of the fire. In times of scarcity, and we 
experienced many such, as I may have occa- 
sion to state hereafter, I had more than once 
the satisfaction of sharing with my captain, 
or the major of the battalion, bread, tobacco, 
eggs, meat, poultry, rabbits, wine, etc. ; the 
fruits of some successful marauding of my 
men. The remarkable progress of education 
within the last fifty years leads me to surmise, 
that with the cause the eff'ect has van- 
ished, and thus put an end to the system in 
question. 

An incident which occurred in the month 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 41 

of June, 1810, forming rather a prominent 
event in my army life, I can scarcely omit the 
mention of it in these reminiscences of my 
former career. 

The band of guerillas commanded by Don 
Julian Sanchez, in the west, had not an equal 
in Spain, with the exception of the one in the 
north, directed by the celebrated Mina. Don 
Julian had for his most zealous lieutenant a 
young man, who, for some motive of private 
revenge, rather than patriotism, had forsaken 
his profession of lawyer to raise a band of 
guerillas, whom he dressed in French uni- 
forms; for he was said to have made a vow 
not to spare the life of any French soldier 
who should fall into his hands. 

One evening I arrived at Salamanca with a 
su2:)ply of provisions, and very tired, after a long 
march under a midsummer sun. My report be- 
ing made, I returned to the convent, the great 
refectory of which was always reserved for 
my detachment ; saw my men all sound asleep 
on their straw, and lay down myself, rejoicing 
in the idea of making a night of it. About 



42 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

eleven o'clock my sentry awoke me, introauc- 
ing an orderly, who brought a command to at- 
tend immediately at head-quarters, on the great 
square of the city. I can not speak very flat- 
teringly of the good grace with which I obeyed 
this unseasonable infringement of my repose, 
but obey I must, and did. General Thiebault 
was writing at his desk when I made my ap- 
pearance, and his first words were : " How many 
men have you now?" "Eighty-four, Sir." 
" Well," he continued, "you shall start imme- 
diately with your whole detachment, and not 
stop until you reach the village called Los 
Pavones." " Sir !" I exclaimed, involuntarily, 
" Los Pavones is eleven Spanish leagues (about 
forty English miles) from this, and my men 
are nearly used up with the last ten days' 
march in the mountains, and " — " Enough," 
said the general, sternly. "Don Aguilar is 
ill in the priest's house at Los Pavones ; the 
man whom you see there sitting in the corner 
is a spy, who has already done good service, 
and who undertakes to conduct you to the 
very house." 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 43 

The general need not have said so much; 
the very name of Aguilar struck through my 
whole being a chord which would have vi- 
brated in the heart of the most apathetic man 
in the army. I eagerly undertook the mis- 
sion, received a few more instructions on the 
subject, and reflecting that it would be impos- 
sible to reach my destination in less than ten 
hours, and that to attempt the capture in day- 
light would insure its failure, I took upon my- 
self to let my men continue their sleep a 
couple of hours more, and at two o'clock 
started, keeping a strict guard on the spy, who 
accompanied us. 

At four o'clock in the afternoon of the 
next day, we arrived within two leagues of Los 
Pavones. A large vineyard appearing at a 
short distance from the road, I marched my 
men into it, made them lie down, with strict 
injunctions not to raise their heads, and upon 
this welcome recommendation, they were all 
soon sound asleep. 

At dusk, under a gentle shower of rain, we 
started again, and reached our destination 



44 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

between ten and eleven o'clock. The spy 
brought us faithfully to the door of the priest's 
house. Leaving the sergeant to watch in 
front, I went with a part of my men to place 
sentinels in a garden which seemed to surround 
the place. During my short absence, a ser- 
vant-girl happened to come out with a pail of 
water, which she was probably about to empty 
into the street. My sergeant had the presence 
of mind to throw his arm around the girl's 
face, thus effectually preventing any noise on 
her part. I returned at this moment and the 
door being half open, I went in, accompanied 
by a dozen men. On entering the hall, I saw 
a light issuing from an apartment, the door 
of which was wide open. To this I proceeded, 
securing in my hand a pocket pistol, which had 
been given me by my brother, and which had 
accompanied me in all my expeditions. Hav- 
ing little doubt of being near the successful 
issue of the adventure, I plunged at once into 
the room, and beheld — not Aguilar, indeed, 
but a venerable old man, sitting up in bed, 
and reading by the light of a lamp. At sight 



Rcmmiscences of Army Life. - 45 

of me and my men, he uttered an exclamation 
of terror, which I soon silenced. After he 
had somewhat recovered, I learned from him 
that Aguilar was, indeed, in the house, where 
he had heen compelled to receive him ; that 
he was now in an apartment at the end of the 
hall, and, as he verily believed, in a dying 
state. To the room thus indicated, we in- 
stantly repaired ; the door was locked inside, 
but three or four stout men soon removed this 
obstacle. At this moment, there was a great 
crash in the room, and two shots fired outside. 
We rushed in, and saw through the feeble 
obscurity of a June night, a bed on the right 
hand side of the room. We threw ourselves 
precipitately on this bed, and called loudly for 
a light. I felt no movement under me, but 
my hair was suddenly grasped most violently, 
which caused me to undergo intolerable pain. 
A light was finally brought in, and showed 
the singular spectacle of six men overlaying a 
motionless body, while one of these men, my- 
self, was held most unmercifully by the hair 
and throat, in the hands of — my own sergeant ! 



46 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

Aguilar had not fainted, although laboring 
under a heavy fever, but he was taken by sur- 
prise, and rendered absolutely powerless. 

The noise we had heard was occasioned by 
the hasty opening of a window and two shots 
from my men, by which one of Aguilar's at- 
tendants had been killed on the spot; the 
other escaped. Two loaded pistols were on a 
table in the middle of the room and two hel- 
mets belonging to French dragoons. 

"We found in the stable a couple of excel- 
lent horses fully equipped. After having re- 
galed my men with whatever the house af- 
forded, and taken some hours' rest, we bound 
Aguilar, placed him in a sort of buggy belong- 
ing to the priest, and made the latter mount 
his mule to accompany us. This proceeding 
was not accomplished without the most pitiful 
lamentations from the poor old man ; for, by 
an order of the day, to which the utmost pub- 
licity had been given, any person receiving a 
guerrilla into his house was liable to capital 
punishment. I assured him that I would see 



Beminiscences of Army Life. 47 

him safe from any penalty, but that my or- 
ders to bring him with me were imperative. 

Our march was uninterrupted by accident, 
and we reached Salamanca about eight o'clock 
the next evening. I rode one of the horses 
we had captured, and during the march used 
my utmost Spanish eloquence to convey some 
comfort to the heart of my unhappy prisoner, 
assuring him that the worst he had to expect 
was to be sent as a prisoner of war to France, 
where the best treatment awaited him. But 
all my endeavors were vain ; either Aguilar 
did not understand me, or he disdained to 
answer, but he observed throughout an ob- 
stinate, and contemptuous silence, and utterly 
refused to accept any nourishment, with the 
excex^tion of two glasses of lemonade. 

In coming down to see the prisoners. Gen- 
eral Thiebault asked for the priest. I pointed 
to him, where he sat trembling on his mule to 
the left of the detachment, but told the gen- 
eral that I was certain the old man had acted 
under compulsion, and that, besides, I had 
given my word that he should be set at liberty 



48 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

on our arrival. " You were very wrong to 
promise such a thing," was the answer, "but 
it is nearly dark ; send him off quietly. 
I'll not see him." The poor priest did not 
need much explanation ; he testified his satis- 
faction by plying the flanks of his mule vigor- 
ously with his heels, and soon disappeared. 

Two days later, my unhappy prisoner was 
tried by court-martial, convicted by the testi- 
mony of some of his own countrymen, of bar- 
barous murders committed upon French sol- 
diers, and hung on the main square of Sala- 
manca. He had to be carried, already half 
dead, to the place of execution ; I did not, 
could not witness the last scene, though I was 
present at the trial. 

A few days after, I obtained leave to rejoin 
my regiment at Ciudad Rodrigo, and thence 
to the short siege of Almeida. The army, 
which now took the denomination of " Army 
of Portugal," was commanded by Marshal 
Massena, Prince of Essling. It numbered 
fifty-four thousand men, and reckoned among 
its chief officers such men as Ney, Junot, 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 49 

Loison, Reille, and other distingaished mili- 
tary characters. 

Almeida, after the explosion of its prin- 
cipal magazine, surrendered ; an indecisive 
engagement took place in its vicinity, and 
the English army commenced its retreat to- 
wards Lisbon. "We soon followed, having 
first provided each soldier with five days' 
provisions ; for Lord Wellington had issued 
a proclamation, inviting the Portuguese to 
follow his army, taking away all they could 
carry, and burning or destroying the rest. 
The inhabitants very generally complied, and 
thus set an example, which, three years later, 
was followed by the Russians at Moscow. 

Here then we had before us a march of 
two hundred miles, across a mountainous 
country, nearly deserted by its population, 
and bare of all kinds of supplies. The 
men, overloaded with their accoutrements, 
their arms, their sixty rounds of cartridges, 
and their five days' rations of provisions, 
soon threw away a part of the latter, and we 
had barely reached Guarda before scarcity 



50 Reminiscences of Arxny Life. 

began to be sensibly felt. The enemy con- 
tinued their retreat, making no stand until at 
Busaco, September 27, 1810, the sixth corps, 
to which my regiment belonged, found itself 
ten miles in advance of the fourth corps, with 
the commander-in-chief, and two miles in ad- 
vance of the second corps, under the com- 
mand of General Reille. The enemy must 
have been well aware of this faulty disposi- 
tion ; for, instead of continuing their retreat, 
they had halted at Busaco, and the first thing 
we perceived, on arriving, was a battery of 
eight guns frowning on an eminence com- 
manding the village. Marshal ]^ey, the com- 
mander of our corps, came to reconnoiter the 
position, and with his usual impetuosity, led 
our regiment to the village, which the English 
soon abandoned, and then sent us, under Gen- 
eral Simon, to storm the battery. We did so, 
and at first did not meet with any serious 
rebuff. Suddenly, however, from three sides 
of the hill, appeared masses of infantry, in 
numbers sufficient to annihilate our poor 26th 
regiment. In less time than I can describe it, 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 61 

the tide of affairs changed wofuUy. Greneral 
Simon was knocked off his horse, with a ball 
in his neck, and left on the field for dead, 
our colonel (Barrere, brother of the notorious 
Jacobin) was killed, as well as three of our 
majors, eight captains, four lieutenants, and 
about four hundred rank and file. A panic 
ensued among us, and contrary to those he- 
roes who boast of never having turned their 
backs to the euemv, I must confess that on the 
order to retreat, given by our remaining major 
(later our excellent colonel. Ferry by name), we 
did not wait for an additional. command of 
quick step, but showed our discrimination be- 
tween going up and coming down hill. I, for 
one, must confess that I never appreciated 
more fully the good sense of that saying of ISTa- 
poleon, " L'art de la guerre est dans les jambes, 
autant que dans la t^te." ^ Our colors were 
saved, and a considerable promotion took place 
in the regiment, now much reduced in num- 
bers, so that we accepted our discomfiture 

^ " The art of war is in the legs as much as in the head." 



52 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

philosophically enough ; though bitter reflec- 
tions were made on the reckless manner in 
which Marshal Key had sacrificed our corps. 
His rash conduct highly incensed the Prince 
of Essling, and the coolness Avhich had for 
some time been suspected to exist between 
the two chiefs soon became apparent to the 
army. 

The southward march of both armies con- 
tinued, without any other serious conflict, 
till, reaching the strong position of Torres 
Vedras, the enemy came to a full stand, and 
Massena was so struck with the natural 
strength of the heights that he devoted four 
days to a careful study of the approaches, and 
finally concluded on the inexpediency of storm- 
ing them. Meanwhile, Wellington, profiting 
by our hesitation, procured from Lisbon a 
fleet, as well as a vast force of artillery, with 
which he covered all available points, thus 
rendering his lines really impregnable. Mar- 
shal Ncy, who on our arrival, had strongly rec- 
ommended an immediate attack, had the indis- 
cretion to blame publicly the inopportune de- 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 53 

lay of his superior, hinting that the latter was 
no longer the Massena of 1796, and that, had 
we attacked at once, we might almost with 
ease, have annihilated the English army. JSTey 
was probably right in his opinion, but his giv- 
ing vent to it in angry and indiscreet words, 
sure to be repeated^ widened the unhappy 
breach between the marshals, and had an 
indirect effect on the issue of the campaign. 

Entrenched camps were soon established in 
various directions ; that of our brigade was 
on the road to Santarem. The rainy season 
had begun ; we had no stores, and no possi- 
bility of communication with Spain ; food, 
forage, clothing, all necessaries, even to a 
sufficiency of ammunition, were wofully scarce, 
and to prevent starvation, the army was soon 
reduced to the necessity of marauding. This 
was carried on by organized parties de- 
tached from each regiment, and sent to parts 
of the country not occupied by either of the 
belligerents. Such expeditions, unavoidable 
as they were, soon proved of little avail, and 
were actually injurious to discipline. Parties, 



54 Eeminiscences of Army Life. 

commanded by captains of companies, fre- 
quently returned with very meager supplies, 
and, in three or four cases, without their 
commander, who had been assassinated, the 
men asserted, by the country people. Strin- 
gent orders were promulgated, a few ex- 
amples were made, but to little purpose ; the 
evil continued. At last, at the suggestion, it 
was said, of General Loison, the command 
of such parties was intrusted to the young 
officers. These, less severe than their sen- 
iors, and even occasionally winking at un- 
avoidable infringements of orders, very gen- 
erally returned to camp with abundance 
of provisions ; in several such expeditions 
under my command, I never discovered that 
any of my men had been guilty of plunder, 
except for necessary food. 

By a sort of tacit, mutual understanding, 
an intercourse, almost friendly, had estab- 
lished itself between the two armies, when 
not in actual conflict. At one particular 
point, the Tagus made a bend, formed by an 
island occupied by the English. From its 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 55 

banks, English officers had frequently quite 
amicable conversations with French officers, 
on their bank of the river. If a British gun- 
boat, unseen by us, came up the river, notice 
was given us, and we retreated to war- 
quarters. General Junot was once wounded 
by neglecting such friendly warning. In all 
cases, prisoners were treated by both nations 
with commendable care and courtesy. 

Sometime in February, 1811, my company 
was at the outposts ; our first lieutenant had 
been out all night in search of provisions, and 
instead of returning to the camp, found it 
more convenient to stop first at our post, which 
happened to be in his way. Among the booty 
secured by his party was an old bull, an ani- 
mal so rare as to become the object of unani- 
mous acclamation by our party. Captain 
Grignon, who commanded us, was so trans- 
ported with joy, that not willing to leave to 
another the honor of sacrificing the victim, he 
snatched a musket from the stand of arms, 
and hastily fired it into the animal's head. 
The poor brute, which had not even been tied, 



56 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

made a fearful leap forward, and galloped 
away, precisely in tlie direction of an English 
post, not visible from ours, but whicli we 
knew to be within half a mile. Without 
much hesitation, the following note was writ, 
ten in pencil, on the back of an envelop, viz : 
" Captain Grignon, 26th of the Line, presents 
compliments to the officer commanding the 
English post, and requests that he will return 
his bull." (This was certainly not a clear case 
of extradition, but our jolly captain was no 
casuist, and did not hesitate.) The laconic 
message was forthwith intrusted to a corporal 
and four men, in working undress, without 
arms, and immediately dispatched. It was 
then about eight o'clock a. m. Several hours 
passed without the re-appearance of our men, 
and the captain, being relieved at noon, was 
obliged to return to camp with the company, 
though beginning to indulge in sad misgiv- 
ings in regard to his chivalric confidence in 
an enemy. On reaching the camp, instead of 
taking the rest which we badly needed, he 
and I returned to the outpost to satisfy our 



Reminsicences of Army Life. 57 

anxiety. JSTo news had been received there 
about our stra}^ men, and a vision of a court- 
martial began seriously to haunt the mind of 
the captain. However, about five o'clock 
p. M., we heard great huzzaing, which pro- 
ceeded from the side of the English posts ; 
forthwith, although it was almost dark, we 
saw about fifty red coats accompanying, with 
vociferous acclamations, our five soldiers, 
who preceded their enthusiastic escort, and 
who, drunk as Bacchus, were running tacks 
from one side of the road to the other, while 
yet seeming to join lustily in the outbursts 
of their excited new comrades. The English 
stopped as soon as they came within range 
of our sentries, and returned to their own 
quarters, after shaking hands heartily with 
our men. The latter at last reached us, and 
threw down their load, consisting of sundry 
pieces of beef, several loaves of bread strung 
on a rope, and two skins full of wine. As to 
explanations, we found it vain to extract any 
frc.m them. They could utter nothing but 
drunken shouts to the honor and glory of the 



58 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

English, who had treated them like princes, 
in the way of drink especially. We were 
forced to leave them at the post, to sober 
themselves by sleep. It was not until the 
next day that the corporal bethought him- 
self of presenting to the captain a note ad- 
dressed to Mm, together with two or three 
English newspapers which he had the day be- 
fore carefully concealed under his clothes. 
The note, written in tolerably correct French, 
ran in something like the following terms: 

" Major , of the regiment, presents 

his compliments to Captain Grignon, and re- 
grets to have only a part of the bull to re- 
turn, beef being a scarce article in his quar- 
ters. As a compensation, he begs acceptance 
of a few loaves of bread and a little wine." I 
was soon called upon to translate (a task I 
could better perform than that of conversing), 
such passages of the paper as referred to our 
army, or to the emperor, under such titles as 
Bony, ISTap, Il^appy, or similar abbreviations, 
by which, in these papers, he was uniformly 
designated. We were soon horrified by the 



Beminiscences of Army Life. 59 

degrading, and to us blasphemous epithets 
unsparingly attached to the name and charac- 
ter of our demi-god, and I fouud the greatest 
difficulty in softening expressions which I 
shuddered to translate. We were not at the 
end of our troubles. In the evening of this 
same da}^, Captain Grignon was summoned 
before the commander-in-chief, made to relate 
all the circumstances of the transaction, and 
was finally dismissed with a sound reprimand 
and a severe admonition for the future. The 
next day, an order of the day was read be- 
fore all the corps of the army, denouncing 
severe penalties against any one guilty of re- 
ceiving communications of any sort from the 
enemy, and of introducing such into our 
camps. 

At last, the time came when we were 
obliged to retire with as good a grace as we 
could assume. The country, for twenty miles 
round, was thoroughly depleted of all re- 
sources; many of our men were dressed like 
Harlequins, and in one regiment (my own) 
850 men had, not bad shoes only, but no 



60 'Reminiscences of Army Life. 

shoes at all. The onlv thin 2^ of which we 
had a sufficiency was tobacco, a store of this 
article having been somewhere unearthed, 
and many, many a meal was taken on smoke ! 
The scarcity of ammunition was also a source 
of uneasiness at head-quarters. 

Our retreat began about the 10th of March, 
1811. The English army had, meanwhile 
received considerable reinforcements from 
England, besides the thousands of volunteers 
levied in Portugal ; but it was abundantly 
supplied with all requisites, whilst, as I said 
above, we were in a state of almost absolute 
destitution. However, as we showed a bold 
front, and had repulsed several outpost skir- 
mishes, we were not seriously molested, ex- 
cept on three occasions. The first was at 
Liria. This town boasted of only one wide 
street, through which our army had to con- 
tinue its retreat. The enemy pressed closely 
on our rear with a powerful artillery, while 
ours was already far beyond Liria. There 
was but one resource left us. Orders were 
given to the last column, and as they left the 



Reminisctnces of Army Life. 61 

above-mentioned street, they set fire to both 
sides of it, and the enemy had the mortifica- 
tion of seeing us quietly reach the position 
previously appointed. 

At the passage of the Mondego, a circum- 
stance occurred similar to one more disastrous 
that happened at Leipsic, three years later. 
A sergeant of artillery, who had been left at 
the bridge with orders to blow it up after all 
the retreating army had crossed, became so 
confused that he set fire to the mine when 
a considerable number of men were still on the 
enemy's side of the river. At Leipsic, the 
unhappy blunder caused the death of a hero. 
Prince Patowsky, and the capture of several 
thousand men. On the Mondego, a part of 
the thirty-sixth regiment was cut off, and a 
whole convoy of mules abandoned to the 
enemy. 

At Sabugal, near the frontier of Spain, we 
had a smart engagement, as if to bid a cordial 
farewell to our British escort; and, to our 
great satisfaction, we re-entered Spain, where 
we found comparative abundance of supplies, 



62 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

aud^ what was not to be despised, ten months' 
pay, then due ns. 

"We had hardly reached Salamanca when 
information was received that Lord Welliuof- 
ton had invested Almeida, our last hold on 
Portugal. Back again we had to go by 
forced marches, and once more confronted the 
enemy on the third of May, 1811, at a village 
called Fuentes D'onores, in the vicinity of 
Almeida. This was a memorable day for me, 
as it influenced all my subsequent life by ar- 
resting my fond aspirations after promotion 
in a military career. 

I was, during the greater part of the day, 
engaged en tirailleurs, and at night was placed 
with forty men at an out-post. During the 
night General Loyson came to the post, ac- 
companied by a single aid. He ordered me 
to take out twenty men, and to lead him in 
the direction which I thought likely to dis- 
cover the nearest English posts. We went 
on stealthily for about half an hour, when the 
general told me that I was probably mistaken 
in my surmises, and that he was going to re- 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 63 

turn to the camp. He, however, desired me 
to proceed for some time further, instructing 
me in case I should be challenged or fired at 
by a foreign vedette, not to answer, but to run 
back with my men to our post, and send word 
to head-quarters. 

The night was very dark, and a drizzling 
rain was falling; our silent march was now 
on a narrow road, flanked by a hedge on either 
side. The general had not left us ten min- 
utes when, on reaching an opening of the 
road, a perfect avalanche of blows over- 
whelmed my unlucky party in about the space 
of one minute. ISTot a shot was fired, the 
bayonet and the butt ends of muskets alone 
did the work, and strange to say, although 
all were more or less wounded, only one 
man, who had formerly been a drummer, was 
killed outright. As for myself, before I could 
well guess into what a wasp's nest I had fal- 
len I was laid prostratedby a blow on the head, 
and with a slight bayonet or sword wound in 
my left shoulder. When I recovered my 
senses, for I had fainted, I found myself lying 



64 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

on the grass, and surrounded by red coats. 
A gentleman, whom I afterwards learned 
was Sir Charles Stewart, addressed me in ex- 
cellent French, and in very soothing terras. 
Soon a surgeon made his appearance, and de- 
clared that the worst harm had been the blow 
on the head, and that a few days would see 
me well. I then learned that I had fallen in- 
to a post composed of two whole companies; 
that my advance had been detected sev- 
eral minutes before the onset; and I was 
thankful that General Loyson had been so 
well inspired as to part with me when he did. 
Being sent to the rear, I met in the hospital, 
at Celorico, an officer whom the day before I 
had observed falling from our desultory iire ; 
he had received a ball in his knee, from which 
resulted permanent lameness ; his acquaint- 
ance became valuable to me later on. His 
name was A. 11. Pattison, of Glasgow, and he 
was, I believe, a captain in the 74th Regiment. 
At Lisbon, where I arrived a few days later, 
I had an unexpected and agreeable meeting. 
As we, prisoners of war, escorted by a de- 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 65 

tacbment of infantry, were about to enter 
Fort Belleim, our destination until out* em- 
barkation for England, we met a number of 
English officers loitering near the gate of the 
fort. One of them approaching us suddenly 
gazed at the number on my shako, then on the 
buttons of my uniform, and thereupon called 
out excitedly to his comrades, who soon 
crowded round us. It turned out that these 
gentleman were officers of the 26th Regiment, 
British infantry, which formed at this time 
the garrison of Fort Belleim. They asked 
and obtained leave to keep me in their quar- 
ters during my detention there, and com- 
menced their kind acts of hospitality by mak- 
ing me, at their mess, gloriously forgetful of 
my captivity, and of all other ills of this 
nether planet. A few days of this mode of 
life, altogether new to me, soon proved pre- 
judicial to my health, and the regimental doc- 
tor declared that a continuation of such diet 
would soon consign me to Portuguese soil. 
The fact was, that the weather being very hot, 
the unaccustomed potations and high living 



6Q Reminiscences of Army Life. 

began to tell seriously on tlie wound in my 
shoulder, and I had once more to be an 
inmate of the hospital. Here I met again my 
quondam friend, Captain Pattison, who, al- 
though much more grievously wounded than 
myself, yet contrived to show me every atten- 
tion in his power. ISTot the least of these was 
to obtain for me a berth on the ship in which 
he returned to England, instead of in one 
specially allotted to prisoners of war. I was 
then quite recovered in health, and had a very 
pleasant voyage of ten days to Portsmouth. 
I fared well on the passage, a quantity of del- 
icacies having been sent on board for me by 
my over-hospitable entertainers of the 26th 
Regiment. 

All the prisoners, numbering about sixty, 
were landed at Gosport, a small town situated 
on the western side of the bay, opposite 
Portsmouth, and in which was established 
the principal depot of French soldiers, pris- 
oners of war. Here, an unexpected pleasure 
awaited me. ISTearly two years previously I 
had persuaded my nurse, who lived in a vil- 



Eeminiscences of Army Life. 67 

lage ten leagues from Paris, to allow one of 
lier sons, my foster-brother, to enlist into my 
own regiment. The conscription was sure to 
overtake him before many months, and he 
would probably be assigned to a regiment, 
in which, having no friends, his life would not 
be a very easy one. He joined our corps, and 
at my request, was attached to my company. 
Proving to be a very intelligent cheerful young 
man, he soon became a favorite both with offi- 
cers and men, and, being a sort of model 
soldier, had every prospect of rising in his 
profession. On the evening of the battle of 
Busaco, at roll call, I was dismayed beyond 
expression at his not answering to his name. 
I had seen and spoken to him several times 
during the day, but, in the confusion that fol- 
lowed, I had lost sight of him. The painful 
task of announcing his probable death to his 
mother devolved upon me ; I, however, ex- 
pressed a faint hope of his having been taken 
prisoner. 

We, the officers, were quartered temporarily 
in a separate building, and were allowed, on 



68 Reminiseeyices of Army Life. 

our parole, to walk about the town. Our first 
impulse was to go and look at and converse 
with our countrymen, many of whom had al- 
ready been for years in captivity. Here truth 
and justice compel me to combat an erroneous 
belief in regard to the harsh treatment of 
prisoners of war, which was propagated with 
a purpose at the time, and upheld by those of 
our men who were so unfortunate as to be 
confined in the pontons — id est, vessels out of 
commission, at anchor in the roads. There, 
indeed, they had a hard fate to bear : wretched 
food, little exercise extremely strict and occa- 
sionally cruel discipline — such was their lot; 
but we ascertained that none were sent to the 
pontons but refractory and incorrigible dis- 
turbers of the peace at Gosport prison ; and 
also the crews of privateers indiscriminately, 
as the British government deemed such as 
having been captured in an illegal mode of 
warfare. 

Whilst walking round the wooden palisade 
(a clair-voie surrounding the vast prison, 
which contained then upwards of five thou- 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 69 

sand men, guarded outside by two regiments 
of militia) I was suddenly startled by a loud 
exclamation of : "Mon lieutenant! Mon lieu- 
tenant ! " Those who were with me turned 
round hastily, when the same voice reiterated : 
" Mon lieutenant ! " adding my name. I have 
seldom experienced more exquisite joy than I 
did then on recognizing my foster-brother, 
looking well and hearty. After shaking 
hands cordially with him through the trellis, 
I called on the commander of the prison, and, 
stating my case, solicited and obtained leave 
to spend the day inside the prison. A prison 
it was in reality, but resembling in all respects 
a huge collection of barracks where an ad- 
mirable organization had been established, 
with strict yet humane regulations. Here, no 
moans of despair were heard, no despondent 
looks observable on the countenances of the 
inmates, but on all sides resounded shouts of 
laughter, or snatches of patriotic songs. This 
philosophical making the best of things might 
in part no doubt have been attributed to the 



70 JReminiscences of Army Life. 

happy disposition of my countrymen — long 
may they cherish it ! 

I was led by my foster-brother to a snug 
little corner occupied by himself and a com- 
rade, containing an apparently good bed, and 
other small articles of furniture, partly pur- 
chased with their own money. The next 
compartment was a kitchen, common to two 
hundred men, and from which exhaled odors 
not in the least indicative of a famished pop- 
ulation. I remained to dinner. I shall not 
say that the repast was sumptuous, but it was 
abundantly supplied with good food ; and, al- 
though served on pewter plates and dishes, 
with knives and forks to match, it was sea- 
soned with such cordial hospitality that the 
remembrance of that dinner has ever left a 
pleasant impression on my memory. Wine 
or alcholic liqi*ors were not produced, such 
articles being excluded from the prison; 
yet we were not restricted to cold water, for 
we had a sufficiency of such excellent ale as is 
manufactured in England alone. Amazed as 
I was at this display of comfort in such a 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 71 

place, one of my first questions was respect- 
ing the source of a degree of opulence for 
which I could not account. This is the in- 
formation which I received from my host. 
He was the son of a basket maker, and him- 
self knew something of the business. On ar- 
riving at the prison he availed himself of the 
permission, liberally given to prisoners, to 
work at such trades as they might be familiar 
with, and to sell the produce. Customers 
were numerous, owing to the cheapness and 
to the general good quality of the prisoners' 
work. This trade, however, had to be aban- 
doned, from the extreme difficulty of procuring 
material. But straw, in sufficient quantities, 
was furnished to our men for bedding. Ger- 
main L , after receiving instructions from 

his fellow-captives, turned his ingenuity to 
the manufacture of straw hats and bonnets, 
and soon realized more money than his father 
could earn at home. But, alas ! this prosperity 
was of short duration. The straw hat and bon- 
net manufacturers of Portsmouth, and some 
even of London and Barnstable, joined in an. 



72 Heminiscences of Army Life. 

earnest petition to the Transport Board,* for 
the purpose of putting an end to a traffic 
which very seriously aftected their interest. 
A total prohibition of such manufacture was, 
in consequence, issued in the prison. Ger- 
main was not discouraged. He soon learned 
another trade by forming a partnership with 
one already skilled in the business; this was 
the manufacturing bones into work-boxes, 
combs, various kinds of toys, but especially 
boats and ships. Material was abundant; a 
sort of market was held twice a week, at 
which the diiferent messes in the prison sent 
all the bone they could collect; and a smart 
competition among the manufacturers gave 
rather a high value to these bones. My fos- 
ter brother showed me a frigate, fully rigged, 
upon which he was then at work, which cost 
him and his partner six months' assiduous la- 
bor, and for which, I was afterwards informed, 
they obtained the handsome sum of forty 

*The Transport Board was a government commis- 
sion, to which the care and control of the prisoners of 
war had been delegated. Its principal agents were offi- 
cers in the British navy. 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 73 

pounds sterling ($200). The cordage and 
sails were constructed of human hair, col- 
lected in the prison. When he was liberated, 
at the peace in 1814, he carried back to France 
about one hundred and thirty pounds ($650), 
the fruit of his industry. Here he bought a 
small farm, married, and was much esteemed 
among the inhabitants of his district. Poor 
rich man ! He died of the cholera in 1832. In 
his conversation he never alluded to the period 
of his captivity, without expatiating in glow- 
ing terms on the integrity and liberality 
evinced towards him by all the English, with 
whom he had dealings. Such reports, and 
many similar ones, circulated through" France, 
tended to weaken the keen feeling of hatred 
and antagonism, to which war had given rise 
between the two nations. 

I have dwelt, perhaps, too long on this epi- 
sode of my life, as it may possibly be devoid 
of interest to my readers ; it was far other- 
wise with me, and I felt almost compelled to 
consign here this tribute of affection. to the 
memory of my foster-brother, Germain Lamy. 



74 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

Repaying abundantly to me, whilst in cap- 
tivity, any little services which it had been 
in my power to render him when with the 
regiment, could I not justly apply in this case 
the encouraging exhortation of Holy Writ, 
" Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou 
shalt find it after many days?" 

After a few days' stay at Go sport, I was, 
along with several others transferred, on 
parole to Odiham, a small town in Hamp- 
shire; there nothing occurred worth record- 
ing. The number of prisoners-of-war having 
been, about this period, considerably aug- 
mented by the taking of the Isle of France, 
Martinique, and Guadaloupe, the towns ap- 
pointed to receive officers on parole in Eng- 
land proper, were found to be so incon- 
veniently crowded that the government de- 
cided to quarter a portion of our number in 
Scotland, where none had hitherto been sent. 
(Political reasons precluded Ireland from 
having any share in the distribution of pris- 
oners.) Odiham furnished its contingent, 
and I was one of the party thus transported 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 75 

to Caledonia, where we landed at Leith, on 
the 1st of October, 1811. From Edinburgh 
we started for our destination, Selkirk, the 
county town of Selkirkshire, thirty-six miles 
south of Edinburgh. On the way, we halted 
a few hours at Penay, where about two thou- 
sand of our soldiers and sailors were con- 
fined : the organization and regulations of 
the prison appeared to us modeled on those 
we had admired at Gosport. 

Selkirk is situated on the river Ettrick, 
which flows from the west and empties 
itself into the Tweed, about half a mile from 
the town. Pew of its houses were covered 
with slate ; thatch being predominant. Its 
population amounted to about two thousand 
inhabitants, and although previous notice had 
been given, we found, at first, some difficulty 
in procuring lodgings for the hundred and 
ninety men that constituted the new colony. 
Matters soon altered in this respect; the peo- 
ple of the town found presently that we were 
cash customers, and they vied with each other 
in obtaining among us occupants for such of 



76 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

their apartments as they could dispose of. 
Pleasant hills encircled the town on all sides ; 
a pretty large square and a fountain occupied 
its center; a fine bridge spanned the Ettrick. 
A plain edifice belonging to the Church of 
England, and a much larger one owned by the 
Presbyterians, or rather a sect denominated 
" Anti-burghers," of whom a venerable, excel- 
lent man, named Laroun, was the pastor, were 
the only buildings worthy of notice in Sel- 
kirk. 

Our pecuniary means were not ample, but 
were sufiicient, every thing being remarkably 
cheap as compared with England. Our pay 
for all ranks, indiscriminately, was half a 
guinea (about three dollars) a week, regularly 
paid .by the agent every Saturday morning. 
Besides, the majority of us received more 
or less money from France, through Th. 
Coutts, the London banker, who had been 
selected for this purpose by both govern- 
ments. One of our number, named Belle- 
ville, was wealthy, and received annually 
about £1,000. My allowance from my family. 



-Reminiscence& of Army Life. 77 

paid quarterly, was £50. Altogether, we 
spent weekly about £150, so that when peace 
took place in 1814, that is, in the course of 
two years and a half, we had expended no 
less a sum that over £4,000, which was quite 
a consideration in such a small town, without 
trade or manufactures. In regard to our 
lodgings, we each paid, on an average, sixty 
cents a week; we generally clubbed together 
in a mess of from two to six members. Some 
of us became very fond of fishing, and suc- 
cessful in the pursuit, the Ettrick and Tweed 
abounding in trout and eels of excellent qual- 
ity, as well as a lake in a neighboring moun- 
tain in very delicate pike. We were never 
molested in this sport, which proved a valua- 
ble resource in our culinary establishments. 

We were too truly French to allow of our 
feelings being so utterly depressed by our 
captivity and the uncertainty of our relief as 
to make us pine away in useless sorrow or 
lamentations. A person captured at Mar- 
tinique succeeded in passing himself off as a 
naval officer, and was accordingly admitted 



78 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

to his parole ; lie was one of our Selkirk 
colony, and possessing some pecuniary means, 
he procured from Edinburgh a billiard table, 
and all the requisites for establishing a very 
good coffee-house, to which no admittance 
was granted, except to our nationality. Soon 
after, ascertaining that some of us had re- 
ceived musical instruction, we rented instru- 
ments from the Capital, and mustered twenty- 
two efficient performers, who, under the lead- 
ership of a very superior violinist, constituted 
an orchestra superior to any that had ever 
resounded among the echoes of our Scottish 
residence. We invited to our concerts, gratu- 
itously, of course, some of the inhabitants 
with whom we had become acquainted. 

These recreations did not long satisfy our 
native activity. We collected among our- 
selves a sum of £100, rented a barn in the 
town, purchased a considerable quantity of 
lumber, as also necessary tools, and proceeded 
to construct a theater, etc. ; and also benches 
sufficient for the accommodation of two hun- 
dred spectators. The orchestra was supplied 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 79 

by our baud, already alluded to. Tbe cos- 
tumes, especially those for female characters, 
puzzled our iugenuity not a little ; none of 
us had ever been a practical carpenter, up- 
holsterer, tailor, or — apprentice to a dress- 
maker. Intelligence, however, stimulated by 
will, may perform small miracles. After sev- 
eral careful rehearsals, we had a select rep- 
ertory drawn from our most popular tragic 
or comic authors, besides the partly musi- 
cal works of our best vaudevillists. Every 
Wednesday we had a representation, to which 
we gave the same invitations as for the con- 
certs on Saturdays, and our barn was usually 
crowded, though mostly with our own people. 
On each of the four roads that converged 
into the town, and at the distance of one 
mile, a stone post was planted, and on it was 
painted the words: ''Limit of the prisoners 
of war." A wag among us rooted up one 
of these stones, carried and transplanted it a 
mile further, to the amusement of the town's 
people, who, to their credit be it told, never 
in one instance availed themselves of a regu- 



80 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

latioii in virtue of wliicli any person who 
could swear that he had seen any of us 
beyond the appointed limit was entitled to 
receive from the culprit one guinea as a fine, 
I have repeatedly gone fishing several miles 
down the Tweed, without ever being fined, or 
in any way molested. 

We had no society in the town, for before 
our arrival, the few persons who might claim 
rank as the gentry of the place had, as we 
understood later, concluded at a meeting held 
for the purpose, that they would not admit 
any of us into their circle. We were per- 
fectly independent of their hospitality, and 
sneered at the absence of it. Advances, how- 
ever, were made by some of the canny Scotch 
people in favor of Belleville, whose name 
I have already mentioned ; the reason of this 
preference, of which he invariably declined 
to avail himself, was his being known to be 
very Avealthy. However, we made a few 
pleasant acquaintances in the vicinity. Few 
of us will have forgotten the kind attentions 
which we received from Mr. Anderson, a 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 81 

gentleman farmer, who never seemed more 
pleased than when he could allure to and 
entertain in his homo those of us who were 
enjoying the sport of fishing in the river on 
the banks of which stood his residence. An- 
other friend of ours was a wealthy, retired 
lawyer, a bon vivant in the full sense of the 
term, and whose only fault, in our estima- 
tion, was his manifest chagrin when we did 
not keep pace with himself in the copious 
libations with which he regaled us. A third 
kind friend was a Mr. Thorburn, also a gen- 
tleman farmer, a most cordial host, who 
seemed bent on making his French guests 
acquainted with such Scottish delicacies as a 
grilled sheep's head, haggis, hodge-podge, 
and a splendid kind of cheese, of his own 
manufacture. 

But there was one person whom I met at 
this time, the honor of whose acquaintance I 
did not then appreciate as I should have done 
in later years. Sir Walter Scott was then 
plain Mr. Scott, no one, except perhaps his 
publishers, even suspecting him to be " The 



82 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

Great Unknown," author of Waverlj. As to 
us, we saw in Mr. Scott only the sheriff of 
Selkirkshire, and a lawyer of some repute in 
Edinbargh. In the former capacity, he fre- 
quently visited Selkirk, when at home at his 
residence at Melrose Abbey, about three miles 
distant from us. 

Mr. Scott became acquainted with one of 
our number, named Tarnier, a ^^oung man of 
great talent, excellent education, and remark- 
able gayety of disposition. Soon, without 
the supposed knowledge of the government 
agent, or rather with his tacit approbation, 
Tarnier was invited to Melrose Abbey, and 
gave us grand accounts of his reception there. 
Presently, and probably at the suggestion of 
our compatriot,, he was authorized by Mr. 
Scott to bring with him throe of his friends 
at each invitation to dinner at Melrose. Thus 
I was present on two or three occasions, in- 
vited, not by the host himself, but by my 
friend Tarnier, 

The period of the year was, to the best of 
my remembrance, about February, 1813, and 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 83 

our mode of proceeding was something like 
the following : Towards dusk, we, the guests, 
repaired to the mile-stone already mentioned; 
there a carriage awaited us, and soon con- 
ducted us to Melrose Abbey, where we were 
politely greeted by our host. We only saw 
Mrs. Scott for the few moments which inter- 
vened before dinner was announced, as she 
was not present at the repast. Mrs. Scott 
was, we understood, either a native of France, 
or of French parentage; at least, she spoke 
our language perfectly ; Mr. Scott had mar- 
ried her at Berlin. Our host appeared to 
us in quite a different light from what we 
had seen of him in the streets of Selkirk. 
There, he impressed us as having a good- 
humored, rather coarse and unmeaning physi- 
oguom}^, and awkward, almost vulgar walk 
and attitudes; this last, perhaps, owing to his 
lameness. At Melrose Abbey, we found him 
a cordial, cheerful gentleman, delicate in his 
kind attentions to his guests. The apart- 
ments were roomy and well-lighted, and the 
table, if not sumptuously, was at least ele- 



84 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

gantly, furnished. It need not be expected 
that I shall give here an elaborate description 
of the surroundings of the mansion ; on both 
occasions of my visits, we arrived in the 
dusky twilight, and departed amidst the dark 
shades of night, by the same conveyance that 
had brought us. Thus, with the exception 
of the dining-room, and a glimpse of the par- 
lor, all I know of Melrose Abbey I have de- 
rived from descriptive publications, which 
any one may read. ISTeither can it be ex- 
pected that I shall give any detail of repasts 
of which I partook some sixty-five years ago. 
But the general tenor of the conversation is 
fixed immutably in my remembrance. Our 
leading topic was not general politics, but 
minute details connected with the French 
army, and above all, traits and anecdotes 
respecting Kapoleon seemed to have an ab- 
sorbing interest for our host, who, we re- 
marked, incessantly contrived to lead back 
the conversation to the subject, if it happened 
to have diverged from it. As may be imag- 
ined, we took care to say nothing unfavora- 



Eeminiscences of Army Life. 85 

ble to the character and honor of our beloved 
emperor. Little did we suspect that our host 
was then preparing a work, published ten 
years later, under the title of "A Life of 
N^apoleon Bonaparte." In this unfair pro- 
duction, which is a stain on the name of its 
otherwise illustrious author, Sir Walter Scott 
relates anecdotes and circumstances connected 
with the emperor, many of which were com- 
municated to him by us, but taking care to 
accompany each recital with sarcastic inu- 
endoes, and self-invented motives of action, 
derogatory to the honor of Napoleon. The 
following is an instance : 

During the armistice that followed the bat- 
tle of Zurich, Prince SouwarofF and General 
Massena spent several days in cordial and 
even familiar conversation in the Italian 
language. On one such occasion, the Rus- 
sian general, alluding to certain confisca- 
tions of objects of art which had been sent to 
France, concluded by saying, " Tutti Fran- 
ces! sono ladroni!" "Oh!" exclaimed Mas- 
sena, " tutti ? ? " " Tutti no, forse," replied 



86 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

Suavaroff, smiling, "tutti no, ma buona 
parti." ^ — (Bonaparte.) This witticism, singu- 
lar indeed as coming from a man known for 
the rude sternness of his character, and re- 
lated to Sir Walter by one of us at his table, 
was seized upon by him as an occasion to 
avail himself of an authority so great as that 
of the renowned Russian general, in order to 
vilify ^N'apoleon by representing him as an 
insatiable robber; whereas it is notorious that 
all the objects of art which he took from for- 
eign countries, and especially from Italy, were 
previously estimated as to their value by a 
committee composed partly of Italians, and 
received, not stolen, in lieu of payment of the 
war indemnities levied on the country. More- 
over, it is admitted on all hands, that Napo- 
leon, conveying these treasures to France, 
never allowed any of them to be placed in 
his residences as his own private property, 
but invariably distributed them among the 
National Museums of Paris and other cities. 

1 "All Frencbmen are robbers." "Oh! all?" "All, no, 
but a good pai't." — (Bonaparte.) 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 87 

Thus passed and ended my brief acquaintance 
with an illustrious character. 

Our friendly intercourse with the worthy 
inhabitants of Selkirk was interrupted only 
on two occasions, rather ani'ising than se- 
rious, but which might have become tragical. 

On the 15th of August, 1813, we met at a 
banquet, intended as a celebration of the em- 
peror's birthday. Our coffee-room was the 
place of meeting ; it was on the ground-floor, 
with windows opening on the public square, 
and at the outside corner of the building was 
a narrow lane leading to the rear of the town. 
About one hundred of us were present, al- 
though we had provided for double that num- 
ber. The dinner passed off very pleasantly, 
and after numerous toasts had been dispased 
of, accompanied by songs, speeches, and ac- 
clamations, it was observed that the table 
still remained loaded with a large quantity 
of eatables, which we could not consume. It 
was suggested that the proper use to be made 
of these good things was to distribute them 
among the populace, who, by this time, had 



88 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

collected in crowds on the square. To this 
suggestion, which was unanimously approved, 
was added another, which was carried by ac- 
clamation; this amendment consisted in our 
requiring that each applicant for our bounty 
should, previous to his receiving it, take ofi' 
his hat and shout, " Yive I'Empereur Kapo- 
l6on ! " Accordingly, several of us posted 
ourselves at the entrance of the lane before 
mentioned, bearing in one hand half a ham, 
turkey, or roast beef, etc., and in the other 
a tumblerful of wine, brandy, or whisky. 
The difficulty was to induce our pseudo 
guests to comply with our sine qua non condi- 
tion ; all hesitated and held back. Finally, 
we perceived among the crowd a man who 
served us as a kind of factotum, and who, in 
this capacity, made a great deal of money by 
us. This person, whose real name I never 
knew, had been nicknamed Bang-bay, from 
the following circumstances : constantly tor- 
mented by simultaneous calls for his services, 
his usual impatient reply was, By-and-by. 
This expression, not understood by most of 



Reyniniscences of Army Life. 89 

us, was changed into Bang-bay, which was 
the nearest approach we could make towards 
pronouncing it, and he was always known 
amongst us by that euphonious appellation. 
As having therefore some authority over this 
man, we called upon him to come forward; 
he obeyed, and, after a short hesitation, com- 
plied with our condition, received nearly a 
whole roast turkey, quaffed a brimful tum- 
bler of liquor, and was then dismissed, not 
back to the square, but through the lane to 
the rear of the town. From that moment 
our only difficulty lay in supplying the num- 
bers who pressed forward as candidates for 
drinking the glorious toast. Soon our sup- 
plies gave out, and the loudly expressed dis- 
satisfaction of those who had hitherto only 
been spectators of the fun gave us infinite 
satisfaction. It was not to be of long dura- 
tion. The crowd had slowly dispersed, but 
half an hour later they again assembled in 
the square. We had resumed our seats, and 
were listening to a song composed for the 
occasion, when a stone, thrown through the 



90 ' Reminiscences of Army Life. 

window, struck a captain of artillery named 
Gruffand. Instantly he sprang out of the 
window, and addressing the mob in impe- 
rious tones, demanded, " What rascal among 
you threw that stone?" All kept silent; but 
seeing a sneer on the countenance of one 
of the mob, he continued, "Perhaps you 
did ; you who are making faces over there ? " 
"Perhaps I did," answered the young man 
boldly. Hardly had he uttered the words, 
when Gruffand hurled the stone right in his 
face, wounding him severely. A tumult was 
about to ensue, when our attention being 
drawn to the scene, we seized knives and 
forks, broke a few chairs to serve us as staves, 
and sallied forth through the doors and win- 
dows, to the rescue of our friend. The people 
being unarmed, thought it best not to test our 
weapons, but at once deserted the square. A 
little later, however, the agent, Mr. Robert 
Henderson, came hurriedly to give us notice 
that a new mob was organizing with arms, and 
that the matter might become very serious; 
that, moreover, we were in one respect in the 



Reyniiiiscences of Army Life. 91 

wrong, as it was now ten o'clock, whereas by the 
regulations which we had engaged implicitly 
to obey, we should have been in our respective 
lodgings by nine o'clock. "We admitted at once 
the reasonableness of these observations, and 
retired without molestation. The affair had no 
sequel, and both parties shortly resumed better 
feelings towards each other. 

Soon, however, we conceived we had an- 
other and more serious cause of displeasure. 
Upon the announcement of a victory of Wel- 
lington in Spain, the people of Selkirk had 
the bad taste, if not the indelicacy, considering 
our position, to ring all the bells in the town, 
and to display an extravagant and insulting 
joy. "We were not long in retaliating. ISTot 
many days had passed when, one Saturday, 
news arrived of a great victory gained by the 
French army in Russia. Our plans were soon 
arranged. The following day being Sunday, 
two of our party attended the service at the 
meeting house, and they contrived to secrete 
themselves in such a manner that the doors 
were closed on them without their being dis- 



92 Beminiscences of Army Life. 

covered. At midnight tlie watchers unbolted 
one of the windows, and admitted half a 
dozen of their confederates; these last had 
provided themselves with a long rope, which 
was soon fastened to the one attached to 
the bell. Six stout arms soon developed all 
its sounding notes, to the imminent danger 
of cracking the instrument, and, in a few 
minutes, wonder and consternation spread 
through the town. Before the crowd, which 
ran from all quarters, had collected at the 
church, our party had escaped to their quar- 
ters, secure from fear of discovery. Although 
suspicion strongly pointed our way, nothing 
could be proved against us, and the affair was 
dropped. 

At last peace was proclaimed, and we were 
notified that a vessel would be ready at Ber- 
wick, on the 26th of April, 1814, to convey us 
to Boulogne or Calais. I need hardly say with 
what transports of joy this news was received 
by us; a joy which I suspect was not shared 
by those whose lodgings were now to be left 
vacant. 



.Reminiscences of Army Life. 93 

The few of us who had sufficient pecuniary 
means proposed to go in carriages to Ber. 
wick; but at a general meeting convened for 
the purpose, it was proposed by Belleville that 
all the money we possessed should be merged 
into one common fund, and distributed equally 
per capita, so that all should go on the same 
footing ; he himself gave the example by con- 
tributing all he had on hand, about £30. The 
whole sum thus collected not amounting to 
more than about £60, we concluded that we 
should all take the journey together, and on 
foot ; one old colonel, and two other officers 
in ill health, were alone exempted from this 
arrangement, and a carriage was provided 
for them. 

We had one anxiety in leaving Selkirk, 
namely, the fear of departing without enjoy- 
ing another bit of fun; an opportunity, how- 
ever, presented itself, and we were not dis- 
posed to reject it. The materials for our the- 
ater, consisting of boards, seats, decorations, 
costumes, etc., had cost us about £120 ; the 
work itself cost us nothing, we being our own 



94 Beminiscences of Army Life. 

carpenters, smiths, painters, tailors, etc. These 
materials would, in our estimation, provide 
us with the means of performing our jour- 
ney more comfortably. Accordingly, we an- 
nounced that the next day we should sell said 
lumber, etc., by auction at our barn ; one 
witty young officer, Tarnier, who spoke Eng- 
lish fluently, was to act as auctioneer. At 
the time appointed, the attendance was large, 
and looked very encouraging. The starting 
price was announced to be £50, but soon had 
to be reduced to £20. From this point, 
amidst the expostulations of the auctioneer, 
answered by sneers from a part of the au- 
dience, the highest bid offered amounted to 
£4 ! We soon had an understanding among 
ourselves. Our worthy auctioneer announced 
to the assembly that the barn being too con- 
fined, we should proceed with the auction in 
a field contiguous to the town, and hitherto 
rented by us for foot-ball exercise. With 
promptitude, and accompanied by the noisy 
merriment of the crowd, Ave shouldered boards, 
benches, etc., and conveyed them to the new 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 95 

scene of operation. But so careful were we 
of our neat decorations, scenery, and cos- 
tumes, that \re first laid under them a quan- 
tity of straw, and then surmounted the whole 
with a high pile of lumber. The auction was 
now resumed, and Tarnier's voluble eloquence 
was exerted to the utmost to strike any chord 
of liberality that might slacken a little the 
purse strings of our Scottish friends. All in 
vain ; the latter knew that the things must be 
sold, and the highest obtainable bid was £6. 
A few of us, well provided with steel, flints, 
and amadon (tinder), were posted round the 
mass of inflammable material ; at a precon- 
certed signal from our auctioneer, the pile 
burst into a blaze, to the great danger of set- 
ting fire to the town, had there been a wind. 
The bonfire was greeted by us with hearty 
shouts of " Vive I'Empereur," although we 
knew that he had already abdicated, and by 
mingled cries of disappointment and mer- 
riment from the crowd of astonished by- 
standers. 

At last the day of our final departure ar- 



96 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

rived ; Tuesday morning was the time ap- 
pointed. Most of ns had passed the night on 
the square, singing and merry-making, so we 
were all ready, and were ahout starting, when 
a new and pleasant sight met our view. Ve- 
hicles of all descriptions were seen pouring 
down the two principal streets leading to the 
town — carriages, gigs, wagons, and a few sad- 
die horses ; these had been sent by the inhab- 
itants of the neighborhood to convey us free 
of expense as far as Kelso, about half way to 
Berwick. This liberal attention was so well 
timed and so delicately performed that we 
could not do otherwise than avail ourselves 
of it with many thanks, and thus we parted 
from our Kelso friends without entertaining, 
on either side, any remnant of grudge that 
might previously have existed between us. 

On arriving at Boulogne, our feelings were 
sorely tried at perceiving our beloved tri- 
color replaced on all public buildings by the 
hated white flag; this unpleasant sensation 
was intensified a little later by an outrage 
which aroused all our ill-disposed sentiments. 



Reminiscences of Army Life. 97 

We had lauded about ten o'clock in the 
morning, and bad been directed to the may- 
or's oiSce, where we were to receive our lodg- 
ing billets. At four in the afternoon we were 
still standing or sitting on the pavement in 
the street awaiting the convenience of his 
honor, the mayor, a recently returned emi- 
grant. Unfortunately for myself, I happened 
to be near the office door when it finally 
opened, and no sooner had I passed the 
threshold than I poured forth a torrent of in- 
dignant reproach on the mayor, and, among 
other sarcasms, told him that under the em- 
peror he dared not have conducted himself 
thus shamefully towards French officers re- 
turning from captivity. The altercation was 
cut short by the interference of some of my 
more cautious friends, but we observed that 
the mayor took notes, as we rightly conject- 
ured, of my name, and the number of my 
regiment. 

A few days later, I arrived at Paris, and 
proceeded to the war office to take further or- 
ders, first handing, as usual, my card to the 



98 Reminiscences of Army Life. 

usher. Many others were before me, proba- 
bly on the same errand ; but when at last 
my name was called, I was introduced into the 
private office of an elderly officer, wearing the 
uniform of a general. Before I had time to 
state my case, he asked me when and where I 
had lauded from England; on my answer, he 
addressed me without hesitation, not a warn- 
ing — that should have been sufficient, in con- 
sideration of my youth, and the position I 
held — but a severe reprimand, which he con- 
cluded by desiring me to leave my address in 
the lower office. I left in a high state of indig- 
nation. Once at home, my first care, in spite 
of all the entreaties of my friends, was to 
write in the curtest terms my resignation, and 
to carry it immediately myself to the war 
office. By evening of the same day I re- 
ceived the answer, "Your resignation is ac- 
cepted." 

Thus ended, for that time at least, my ex- 
perience of life in the army. 



